Walmart Just Dragged Primary Care Into the Healthcare Cost Battle
Last week, mega-retailer Walmart (NYSE: WMT) tiptoed deeper into mostly uncharted healthcare waters by opening its second primary care facility called Walmart Health. The new location in Calhoun, Georgia, will be staffed with healthcare providers offering everything from walk-in and clinical care to x-rays and dental services, mirroring a similar center it opened in September in Dallas, Georgia. The company said the facility will provide "affordable, transparent pricing regardless of a patient’s insurance status."
Were it just one such location, the facility could simply be categorized as a pet project; many companies maintain small business units for experimental purposes. It's not just one though, and it's not just Walmart moving deeper into primary care. Insurer Humana (NYSE: HUM) is undertaking a joint venture with a private equity firm to develop more primary care centers aimed at serving older Americans. Walgreens Boots Alliance's (NASDAQ: WBA) primary care partner VillageMD announced a deal last week to acquire almost 50 different medical practices in Arizona.
Primary care is shaping up as the healthcare industry's next major battleground in a war against burgeoning costs. It's a contest Walmart may be better prepared to fight than it gets credit for.
Source Fool.com
